Phil Niekro

Phil Niekro

Philip Henry Niekro played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball, 20 of them with the Milwaukee Atlanta Braves. He won the National League Gold Glove Award five times, was selected for five All-Star teams, and led the league in victories twice and earned run average once. His longevity is attributed to his knuckleball, which is a difficult pitch to master but is easy on the arm and often baffles hitters due to its unpredictable trajectory. He is the last MLB pitcher to have both won and lost 20 or more games in the same season.

About Phil Niekro in brief

Summary Phil NiekroPhilip Henry Niekro played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball, 20 of them with the Milwaukee Atlanta Braves. He won the National League Gold Glove Award five times, was selected for five All-Star teams, and led the league in victories twice and earned run average once. His longevity is attributed to his knuckleball, which is a difficult pitch to master but is easy on the arm and often baffles hitters due to its unpredictable trajectory. He and his younger brother Joe amassed 539 wins between them, the most combined wins by brothers in baseball history. He is the last MLB pitcher to have both won and lost 20 or more games in the same season. He was a boyhood friend of Basketball Hall-of-Famer John Havlicek. The baseball field on which he played at Bridgeport High School’s Perkins Field athletic complex was renamed ‘The NieKro Diamond’ in 2008 after both Phil and his brother, fellow major league pitcher Joe Nie kro. He died in a car accident in 2011. He has been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997. His brother Joe is also a Hall of Famer, having been a member of the Atlanta Braves and the Milwaukee Braves.

His son, Phil Jr., is a professional baseball player and the owner of a baseball team, the Cincinnati Reds, and the New York Mets. He also played in the World Series for the Cincinnati Red Sox in 1998 and the San Francisco Giants in 2000. He played for several minor league teams at several levels for the next few years, appearing mostly as a relief pitcher. He had a 1. 87 ERA in 1967, earning an 11–9 record with 10 complete games and 9 saves. From 1971 to 1973, he combined for a combined record of 44–36 for a record of a combined 44-36 for the Braves. In 1970, he turned out to be a no-hitter against the San Diego Padres. He surrendered a league-leading 40 home runs that year, a feat he would not repeat until 1979. In 1979, with the Braves, he finished with 21 wins and 20 losses. This was his third and final 20-win season and his second and last 20-loss season. His 121 career victories after the age of 40 is a major league record. He appeared in 37 games, finishing with a 14–12 record and 15 complete games.